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Matilda Castren smacked her putt, and partner Kelly Tan watched anxiously as it rolled toward the cup.
The ball looked as if it was going in the whole way, but instead, it broke hard right at the hole and missed. Standing off to the side of the 18th green, Cheyenne Knight and Elizabeth Szokol gave a hug to each other before Emma Talley and Maria Fassi rushed the green and sprayed them in champagne.
Knight and Szokol held on to their 54-hole lead, shooting 5-under 65 to hold on at 23 under and win the 2023 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational at Midland Country Club in Midland, Michigan. For Knight, it’s her second LPGA victory while Szokol picked up her first. It was their third start as partners in the tournament.
“It’s amazing to get my first win,” Szokol said. “It’s something I’ve been working for a long time, and it’s so tough to win out here. Everyone is such a great player.
“So to finally do that, and it’s even better with Cheyenne by my side. We’ve been talking about this event all year. And since our good finish last year, we couldn’t wait to get back, and to actually win is pretty amazing.”
Knight and Szokol also became the second American duo to win the event, joining defending champions Jennifer Kupcho and Lizette Salas.
Castren’s putt would’ve forced a playoff, but her and Tan settled for solo second at 22 under. There was a three-way tie for third at 20 under, including Celine Boutier/Yuka Saso, Jodi Ewart Shadoff/Talley and Celine Borge/Polly Mack.
There was a nearly two-hour rain delay with the leaders on the 13th hole, but Knight and Szokol made two birdies down the stretch to hold on.
“It was hard going to the rain delay, two-shot lead coming back, and it evaporated really quickly,” Knight said. “It was just surreal. It was, like, wow, we did it. We’ve been out here all day, but we did it. So it was just, yeah, pure joy.”
Up next is the fourth women’s major championship of the year, the Amundi Evian Championship at Evian Resort Golf Club in France. Brooke Henderson is the defending champion.